ESPN’s First Take broadcasts live from Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium with hosts Molly Qerim and Stephen A. Smith, Friday, Sept. 2, 2022. The show was in town as part of the Black College Football Hall of Fame Class (Image via IMAGO)
Despite the banter for the past few weeks, Stephen A. Smith went home empty-handed from the NBA All-Star celebrity game for the second straight year. SAS lost out to his ESPN colleague Shannon Sharpe at Lucas Oil Stadium on Friday night.
There’s no question. Smith was a bit salty for the L, but the veteran sports analyst was enraged by the alleged false narrative surrounding his ankle injury. When he wasn’t present during a segment of First Take before the celebrity basketball game, host Molly Qerim disclosed the reason.
Qerim revealed that Smith ended up in the hospital after Dallas Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons crossed him over. If anyone knew the truth, it was Smith himself, who later fired back at Qerim for “fabricating stories” about him. On his YouTube channel, he posted a 5-minute video going on a rant.
You see, that’s what Molly does. She fabricates stories and makes stuff up, and she’s always sensationalizing stuff. It’s always to make me look bad.Smith screamed
What happened to Stephen A. Smith?
The 56-year-old was looking forward to beating Sharpe at the All-Stars game. He was even giving private lessons to the team on how to guard Parsons. Given his basketball pedigree from his college days, Smith was confident of bagging the game. But he couldn’t even sit on the bench; he had to watch the game from the hospital.
